China's largest wafer foundry SMIC's latest 14nm FinFET process is nearing completion of R&D. Its trial production yield can reach 95%. The target of mass production in 2019 seems to be not far behind. The shortage of semiconductor talents is still an important issue facing SMIC.
SMIC has a huge gap with the first-line camp
Founded in 2000, SMIC is the most comprehensive, well-supported and largest integrated circuit manufacturing company in mainland China. Since its establishment, it has been focusing on semiconductor chips. From the outside world, SMIC is the representative of 'China Core'. .
However, SMIC’s current state-of-the-art process is 28 nm, and from the first quarter of 2018, 28 nm accounted for only 3.2% of its revenue, compared to UMC and Intel’s slower advanced process manufacturers. , More than a generation behind, not to mention TSMC, Gromovand, Samsung and other companies that are progressing faster with advanced process development, are already preparing to cut into the 7-nanometer process.
As of the end of the second quarter of 2017, TSMC’s mid- to high-end process chips below 28nm already accounted for 54% of total revenue, and below 40nm accounted for 67%. SMIC’s 2017 revenue contribution is highest at 90nm and below. The processing technology of the company accounted for 50.7% of the total. The R&D of SMIC's 14nm technology also reached its critical breakthrough period in 2017 and has not yet been completed. It can thus be seen that when SMIC is still struggling at 28nm, TSMC's technology has been at least Far ahead of the three generations.
In order to catch up with such a gap, SMIC not only took the position of co-chief executive officer of Samsung Electronics and former high-level Leong Mengsong of TSMC in 2017, mainly to use his past experience to guide SMIC in developing a 14-nm FinFET process. On the process, SMIC's 14nm FinFET process can reach its mass production target in 2019.
SMIC also announced at the beginning of this year that it will jointly invest US$10.24 billion in cooperation with the two major government industry funds to accelerate the development and production of advanced processes at 14nm and below, and eventually achieve a monthly production target of 35,000 units. , In the case of SMIC's 14nm FinFET process achieving 95% yield, it is equal to a big step towards the goal.
Lack of talent leads to slow development of the industry
SMIC has been unable to enter the front line for 18 years on the road to independent chips. Apart from the slower R&D progress compared with giants such as rival TSMC, another important reason is the reserve of high-end chip talent. Insufficient, this is not only a hindrance to the development of SMIC, but also a widespread problem in China's chip industry. The shortage of talent reserves and training is a key factor in the gap between China's chip semiconductor industry and the international top level.
The “White Paper on Talents in China's Integrated Circuit Industry (2016-2017)” published by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in 2017 indicates that 700,000 people are currently required to invest in this industry. The shortage of talent leads to China’s integrated circuit industry. The slow pace of independent innovation.
Southeast University, one of the first national integrated circuit talents cultivation bases, has been training a large number of talents in the field of integrated circuits for many years. The enrollment of integrated circuits related to Southeast University has increased dramatically. In terms of cultivating master's degrees, the number of students enrolled in the Microelectronics Institute has been increased. From more than 200 people in the past few years, to more than 400 people last year. Huazhong University of Science and Technology has increased the number of placemates of 120 part-time places in IC talent training last year and plans to expand its doctoral enrollment program by 50% this year.
However, long-term hydrolysis is not nearly thirsty. The IC industry is a technology-intensive, talent-intensive, and capital-intensive industry. Its industrial chain includes design, manufacturing, packaging, testing, equipment, and materials. This industry emphasizes experience accumulation. The cultivation of talents is not an overnight success. Therefore, in a short period of time, China's chip industry still can not get rid of the dilemma of talent shortage.
How to get rid of the 'empty core' pain?
Although ZTE's business has come to an end, there is no such thing as a core technology that is 'such as being in the throat'. The core technology is controlled by people. The foundation of China-made 2025 is not solid.
The development of the chip industry requires a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources. Moreover, these investments will not be effective in the short term. It is not enough for individual companies to go it alone. After all, the integrated circuit industry is a national comprehensive national strength competition. .
Although today's 'chip fever' has gathered some policies, funds and other resources in the integrated circuit industry can play a role in attracting talents. However, if we want to break through the bottleneck of talents in China's integrated circuit industry, we need to consider longer-term strategies to make 'chips'. The heat is not just a gust of wind. In addition, based on the characteristics of IC industry globalization, the globalization of talents is an inevitable trend. In the case of China's relatively backward industrial level, efforts should be made to attract outstanding global IC talents.
With the release of the National Outline for the Development of the Integrated Circuit Industry in 2014, the National Integrated Circuit Industrial Investment Fund was established. China is increasing its support for leading enterprises and encouraging enterprises to increase R&D investment in key technologies in key areas. With regard to the mechanism, the industry is also actively exploring. With the increasing investment in innovation, the improvement of innovation mechanisms, and the gradual improvement of intellectual property awareness, China's chip industry can remove the 'empty core' pain.